Month: December 2011

Venue/ Stadium: Williams Arena, Minneapolis, MN

Time/Date: 9 PM EST Tuesday, December 13, 2011
NCAA Odds From: BetOnline
Moneyline: OFF
Spread (ATS): Minnesota -16.5
Over/Under: 128

Central Michigan Chippewas vs. Minnesota Golden Gophers Preview

Minnesota (10-1) has won 4 straight game since losing their only game of the season and while they are not a high scoring team they are a great shooting team ranking 21st in the nation in field goal percentage. On the other side of the coin Central Michigan (4-5) is one of the worst shooting teams in the nation ranking 290th in the nation in field goal percentage and they have lost 2 straight. NCAAB lines have Minnesota as big 16.5-point home favorites with a total of 128.

In their last games Minnesota beat St. Peter’s 69-47 and Central Michigan lost to Tennessee State 65-57.

The Golden Gophers are led by F Trevor Mbakwe, who leads the team in scoring (14 ppg) and rebounding (9.1 rpg). He is the only player for Minnesota that is averaging in double figures and if CMU can shut him down they may have a chance.

The Minnesota G tandem of Julian Welch (9.9 ppg) and Austin Hollins (8.9 ppg) are both solid 3-point shooters and the Chippewas have to play good perimeter D in this game and force some turnovers.

G Trey Zeigler (17.8 ppg) is the big gun for the Chippewas and he must have a big game tonight and if he struggles this game may get ugly. He and G Austin McBroom are the 2 leading scorers and must play well since CMU does not have a great frontcourt.

While the Chippewas are a poor shooting team that does not light up the scoreboard they rank 39th in the nation in rebounds per game while Minnesota only ranks 195th. While Mbakwe is the only Minnesota player that is averaging over 5 rebounds per game this season Zeigler is the leading rebounder for the Chippewas and he is only 6’5″.

The Chippewas must hit the boards this game and create some 2nd chance opportunities off misses and if the Golden Gophers can dominate the glass they will easily win this game.

Betting Trends

This season Minnesota is 4-3-1 ATS and has an O/U record of 3-4-1 and Central Michigan is 4-2-1 ATS and has an O/U record of 3-4.

Central Michigan is 3-9-2 ATS in their last 14 games as a road underdog and has an Under record of 21-6 in their last 27 road games.

Minnesota is 6-14-1 ATS in their last 21 home games and has an Under record of 3-0-1 in their last 4 games.

Jason’s Pick: While Minnesota will win this game I think Central Michigan will cover the spread, as this will be a low scoring game.

Venue/ Stadium: Humphrey Coliseum, Starkville, MS

Time/Date: 9 PM EST Tuesday, December 13, 2011
NCAA Odds From: BetOnline
Moneyline: OFF
Spread (ATS): MSU -14
Over/Under: 138

Florida Atlantic Owls vs. Mississippi State Bulldogs Preview

After being upset by Akron in their 2nd game of the season Mississippi State (9-1) has reeled off 8 straight wins including beating the ranked teams of Texas A&M and Arizona. Florida Atlantic (4-5) snapped their 2-game losing streak with a win in their last game, but they have lost every game this season against teams from big conferences. NCAAB lines have MSU as big 14-point home favorites in this game with a total of 138.

In their last games MSU crushed Troy 106-68 and Florida Atlantic beat Warner South 98-70.

The Bulldogs have been on fire shooting the rock lately, as they have shot nearly 50% from the field in their last 5 games including shooting over 56% in their last game.

Last season Florida Atlantic beat MSU 61-59 in their house and to do that again they will have to rely on their defense, as they only rank 152nd in the nation in scoring and 227th in field goal percentage.

FAU will have to try to contain MSU’s leading scorer Dee Bost (18.1), who is shooting 37.5% from beyond the 3-point line and buried a career high 7 3-pointers in the blowout win over Troy, and Arnett Moultrie (17.1 ppg), who leads the SEC in rebounding (11.3 rpg).

Bost and Jalen Steele combine to hit for 12 3-pointers in the win over Troy and FAU must keep these guys from getting open looks from deep.

Owls’ G Greg Gantt (13.9 ppg) and F Pablo Bertone (10.7 ppg) must play well for FAU to pull off another upset against MSU. It is key that Bertone (5.9 rpg) and Kore White (9.1 ppg 5.1 rpg) play good D on Moultrie and not allow him to dominate in the paint. White has struggled in the last few games scoring in single digits in his last 4 games.

FAU is only 1-4 on the road this season and that lone win was against college basketball powerhouse Hofstra.

Betting Trends

This season MSU is 6-4 ATS and has an O/U record of 5-5 and FAU is 4-3 ATS and has an O/U record of 2-5.

FAU is 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games as a road underdog and has an Under record of 5-1 in their last 6 road games.

MSU is 4-0 ATS in their last 4 home games, 3-1-1 ATS in their last 5 home games facing a team with a losing road record, and has an Over record of 4-1 in their last 5 after scoring 100 points or more in their previous game.

Jason’s Pick: MSU is a better team than they were last season and they will come out and crush FAU in this game. Take MSU to cover the 14-point spread.

NCAA Basketball Matchup: Arkansas Pine-Bluff Golden Lions vs. Michigan Wolverines

7:00 PM EST

College Basketball Gambling Odds from BetOnline

NCAA Basketball Betting Favorite: Off

Over/Under: Off

 

Arkansas Pine-Bluff rarely gets a chance to play on national television, but they’ll get that rare opportunity Tuesday night when ESPNU hosts the team’s game at Michigan. The Wolverines are 7-2 and ranked 18^th in the nation. The Wolverines are a pretty young team, but they are maturing quickly and they could make some noise in the Big Ten this year. Will the Golden Lions be able to hang around in this one, or will this one get ugly fast?

Arkansas Pine-Bluff is 1-5 on the season so far. The Golden Lions are terrible at taking care of the basketball. The team turns it over on nearly 27% of their offensive possessions. In addition, Arkansas Pine-Bluff is shooting just 38% from the floor. Savalance Townsend leads the team with an impressive 18.2 points per game. Townsend excels at using his quickness to get to the basket. The team really needs someone else to step up and take some pressure off Townsend on the offensive end. Defensively, the Golden Lions do a good job forcing turnovers with some full-court pressure. In the half-court, this team gives opponents far too many good looks.

Michigan has been lighting it up on offense this year. This isn’t a team that pushes the tempo, but they are extremely efficient on offense. The Wolverines come into this game hitting 61.6% of their two-point shots this year, which is the best mark in college basketball. Tim Hardaway Jr. has a ton of ability, and he continues to develop in his game on a constant basis. He leads the team with 16.4 points per game in 2011. Trey Burke is a sensational freshman point guard who has stepped in and become a leader for the team right away. Michigan only allows 61.9 points per game.

This one should be a complete mismatch. The Golden Lions have been beaten badly by every decent team they have played this year. Look for Michigan to roll in this one.

Prediction: Michigan 75 Arkansas Pine-Bluff 50

NCAA Basketball Matchup: Wisconsin Badgers vs. Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panthers

8:00 PM EST

College Basketball Gambling Odds from BetOnline

NCAA Basketball Betting Favorite: Wisconsin -9.5

Over/Under: 112

 

The Wisconsin Badgers have had their way with Wisconsin-Milwaukee in the past decade. The teams have met every year, and the Badgers are 10-0. Bo Ryan’s team has two losses this year, but they have come against Marquette and North Carolina. The Badgers tremendous defense and terrific ball control on offensive make them very difficult to beat. Wisconsin-Milwaukee is also off to an impressive 8-2 start, and they would love nothing more than to shock the Badgers on Tuesday night.

Wisconsin has been winning games with their amazing defense this year. Opponents are shooting just 33.5% from the floor this season. Wisconsin is holding opponents to just 44.9 points per game. Jordan Taylor is the Badgers leader at the point guard spot, but he has been struggling shooting the ball so far this year. Taylor does have a very impressive assist to turnover ratio of 57 to 15. Ben Brust barely played last year, but he is the team’s leading scorer at 12.7 per contest this year. The Badgers are a frustrating team to defend because of their patience on offense. This is a very disciplined team that will be a tough out in March.

Wisconsin-Milwaukee is out to prove that they can compete with their intrastate rivals from the Big Ten. The Panthers have been doing it with stellar defense so far this year as well. Opponents are hitting just 25% from beyond the arc. The Panthers are holding opponents to 58.6 points per game. Kaylon Williams, James Haarsma, and Ja’Rob McCallum give the team three players averaging double figures in scoring this year. Wisconsin-Milwaukee has struggled to keep up with the Badgers on the glass in recent matchups, and that is an area that must improve this year.

The posted total is set at a ridiculously low level already, but I still think the under is the play here. Look for the two defenses to control this one. This game might have trouble topping 100 points.

Prediction: Wisconsin 58 Wisconsin-Milwaukee 45